


EOTW: Novella Seven: Nightfern's Choice

by Jayie_The_Hufflepuff



Series: Warriors: Series 5.5: Echoes of the War [13]
Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-27
Updated: 2018-11-27
Packaged: 2019-09-01 08:13:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16761349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jayie_The_Hufflepuff/pseuds/Jayie_The_Hufflepuff
Summary: Seventh novella in the EOTW series. When a devastating storm strands WindClan warrior Nightfern in an enemy land, she finds an unexpected source of strength, and of love, in her new surroundings. But she has seen for herself what comes from a cat being trapped between their Clan and their heart. Will Nightfern follow the in the pawsteps of her kin, or will she forge her own path?





	1. Allegiances

Nightfern‘s Choice Allegiances

NOVELLA 7

**WINDCLAN**

**LEADER**

ASHSTAR - gray she-cat

**DEPUTY**

WEASELFUR - ginger tom with white paws

**MEDICINE CAT**

KESTRELFLIGHT - mottled brown tom  
APPRENTICE, ICEPAW

**WARRIORS**

CROWFEATHER - dark gray tom  
GORSETAIL - very pale gray-and-white she-cat with blue eyes  
HARESPRING - brown-and-white tom  
EMBERFOOT - gray tom with two dark paws  
APPRENTICE, QUICKPAW  
HEATHERTAIL - light brown tabby she-cat with blue eyes, mother of Breezepelt's kits  
CROUCHFOOT - black tom  
LARKSONG - gray she-cat with green eyes  
DARKBREEZE - dark gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes, kit of Heathertail and Breezepelt  
NIGHTFERN - brown mottled she-cat with amber eyes, kit of Heathertail and Breezepelt

**APPRENTICES**

QUICKPAW - pale brown tom

**QUEENS**

SUNSTRIKE - tortoiseshell she-cat with large white mark on her forehead, mother of Harespring's kits (Hawkkit, a tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat, Honeykit, a golden-brown tabby-and-white she-cat, Sorrelkit, a brown-and-white tabby tom with spiky fur, and Tunnelkit, a dark ginger-and-white tabby tom)  
SEDGEWHISKER - light brown tabby she-cat, expecting Weaselfur's kits

**SHADOWCLAN**

**LEADER**

ROWANSTAR - ginger tom

**DEPUTY**

OAKFUR - small brown tom

**MEDICINE CAT**

TWIGCLAW - stump-tailed brown tabby tom

**WARRIORS**

SMOKEFOOT - black tom  
APPRENTICE, MARSHPAW  
TIGERHEART - dark brown tabby tom  
SNOWBIRD - pure white she-cat  
OLIVENOSE - tortoiseshell she-cat  
SHREWFOOT - gray she-cat with black feet  
DEWFROST - gray she-cat  
WETWHISKER - dark tabby tom  
APPRENTICE, STONEPAW  
SPECKLEFOOT - pale tortoiseshell she-cat  
TREESHADOW - dark brown she-cat

**APPRENTICES**

STONEPAW - pale gray tabby tom with blue eyes  
MARSHPAW – small black-and-white she-cat with green eyes

**QUEENS**

DAWNPELT - cream-furred she-cat, mother of Scorchfur's kits (Stripedkit, a dark brown tabby tom, and Smokekit, a dark cream she-cat)  
APPLEFUR - mottled brown she-cat, mother of Crowfrost's kits (Adderkit, a dappled gray tom with green eyes, and Minkkit, a pale brown tabby she-cat)  
PINENOSE - black she-cat, mother of Toadfoot's kits (Graykit, a dark gray tom with blue eyes, and Nightkit, a black she-cat with pale green eyes)  
TAWNYPELT - tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes, expecting Rowanstar's kits

**ELDERS**

TOADFOOT - dark brown tom  
CROWFROST - black-and-white tom  
RATSCAR - brown tom with long scar across his back

**THUNDERCLAN**

**LEADER**

BRAMBLESTAR - dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

**DEPUTY**

SQUIRRELFLIGHT - dark ginger she-cat with green eyes

**MEDICINE CAT**

JAYFEATHER - gray tabby tom with blind blue eyes

**WARRIORS**

LEAFPOOL - light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes, former medicine cat  
BIRCHFALL - light brown tabby tom  
BERRYNOSE - cream-colored tom  
APPRENTICE, AMBERPAW  
MOUSEWHISKER - gray-and-white tom  
APPRENTICE, SNOWPAW  
LIONBLAZE - golden tabby tom with amber eyes  
CINDERHEART - gray tabby she-cat  
POPPYFROST - tortoiseshell she-cat  
FOXLEAP - reddish tabby tom  
TOADSTEP - black-and-white tom  
BLOSSOMFALL - tortoiseshell and white she-cat  
APPRENTICE, DEWPAW  
BUMBLESTRIPE - very pale gray tom with black stripes  
APPRENTICE, BLAZEPAW  
IVYPOOL - silver-and-white tabby she-cat with dark blue eyes  
APPRENTICE, SILENTPAW  
MOLEFOOT - brown-and-cream tom  
LILYFROST - dark tabby she-cat with patches  
SEEDLIGHT - very pale ginger she-cat

**QUEENS**

ROSEPETAL - dark cream she-cat, mother of Molefoot's kits (mother of Sparkkit, a dark cream-and-white tom, and Lightkit, a light brown tom with white paws)  
HAZELTAIL - small gray-and-white she-cat, mother of Foxleap's kits (mother of Finchkit, a pale ginger tabby tom with white, and Petalkit, a pale gray she-cat with blue eyes)  
DOVEWING - pale gray she-cat with golden eyes, expecting Bumblestripe's kits  
DAISY - cream long-furred cat from the horseplace

**ELDERS**

CLOUDTAIL - long-haired white tom with blue eyes  
BRIGHTHEART - white she-cat with ginger patches  
MILLIE - striped gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes  
SPIDERLEG - long-limbed black tom with brown underbelly and amber eyes  
SORRELTAIL - tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with amber eyes

**RIVERCLAN**

**LEADER**

MISTYSTAR - blue-gray she-cat with blue eyes

**DEPUTY**

REEDWHISKER - black tom

**MEDICINE CAT**

WILLOWSHINE - gray tabby she-cat

**WARRIORS**

MINNOWTAIL - dark gray she-cat  
MALLOWNOSE - light brown tabby tom  
ROBINWING - tortoiseshell-and-white tom  
PETALFUR - gray-and-white she-cat  
APPRENTICE, YARROWPAW  
GRASSPELT - light brown tom  
MOSSYFOOT - brown-and-white she-cat  
APPRENTICE, FINPAW  
RUSHTAIL - light brown tabby tom  
HERONSTRIKE - brown tabby tom  
LEAFDRIFT - pale gray she-cat  
APPRENTICE, EELPAW  
PONDBREEZE - dark brown tom with white paws

**QUEENS**

DUSKFUR - brown tabby she-cat, mother of Reedwhisker's kits (Lakekit, a gray-blue tom with green eyes, and Rainkit, a very pale brown tom with darker flecks and ice-blue eyes)  
SILVERSHINE - silver tabby she-cat, mother of Grasspelt's kits (Swankit, a fluffy white she-cat with golden eyes, and Slushkit, a fluffy very pale gray-and-white tom with dark amber eyes)

**ELDERS**

GRAYMIST - pale gray tabby she-cat  
POUNCETAIL - ginger-and-white tom

**CATS OUTSIDE THE CLAN**

SMOKY - muscular gray-and-white tom who lives in a barn at the horseplace  
FLOSS - small gray-and-white she-cat who lives at the horseplace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we have the allegiances for Nightfern's Choice. ^^ This takes place only two moons after the start of Faded Boundaries, so this is basically just Faded Boundaries with the Clans reordered in order of importance, ShadowClan and WindClan apprentices displayed instead of ThunderClan, kits added, and any minor changes in those two moons added. The good part is that that means I have basically all of these ref sheets ready already. ^^


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Only days after the devastating storm that disrupted the Gathering...

Warriors Series 5.5: Echoes of the War  
Novella 7: Nightfern's Choice  
Chapter One

Clouds were pulling in overhead and blotting out the darkening sky. Even as the sun set over the horizon, the golden light was blotted out by the clouds, and a misty haze began to fall over the moorlands. A lone creature stood atop a small ridge. She watching with wary anticipation as droplets began to fall from the sky, leaving wet flecks on her pelt. The whole moor seemed to fall into an anxious hush as the rain began once more.

“Nightfern.” The she-cat turned to see a ginger tabby tom coming to join her on the ridge. A brown tabby and a gray she-cat were following behind “See anything?”

Nightfern sighed. “Not so much as a mouse stirring in the grass, let alone a rabbit.” She tried to hide the uncomfortable prickling of her pelt as she faced her Clanmates. With the deputy Weaselfur leading her patrol, she didn't want to be seen acting like a scared kit at the sight of a little rain, no matter how uneasy it made her. “Do you think we should head back to camp?” she asked, trying to sound casual.

Weaselfur's eyes narrowed. “We haven't caught anything yet,” he reminded the she-cat in a stern mew. “It may be greenleaf, but that doesn't mean we can slack off when hunting for our Clan.” His golden gaze swept the horizon, his tail twitching thoughtfully behind him, before he turned back to Nightfern. “There's still plenty of time before it gets too late to be out. We'll keep going until we've found something for the Clan.”

Anxiety still pricked at Nightfern's pelt. She longed to protest, but she would never dare to, not even through fear of the coming storm. Instead, she dipped her head meekly. “Yes, Weaselfur.” She fell in with the rest of the group as Weaselfur began leading them out into the moorland beyond.

A gray she-cat fell in beside Nightfern. Sympathy glowed in her green gaze as she mewed, “Don't take what Weaselfur said too personally.” Nightfern lowered her gaze, embarrassment flooding through her pelt. “I reckon we're all a bit jumpy about this rain after what happened at the Gathering, Weaselfur included.”

A shiver ran through Nightfern's pelt at the memory. Two days ago, the four Clans had met to Gather as they always did, but a storm had thrown the Gathering into chaos. It had been no ordinary storm. Nightfern's pelt still trembled at the memories of rain flooding down from the skies, the roar of it deafening her to any other sound, the way that the lake had heaved and thrashed about with the force of it. WindClan's only elder, Webfoot, had drowned while trying to cross to the safety of the shore. The remaining Clan cats had been forced to shelter in the treetops for the night, and upon waking, they'd learned that the tree-bridge that led back to land had been swept away by the storm. They'd had to swim back to shore in order to return to their Clans. Nigthfern had never seen such a terrifying force before, and it terrified her to think that something like that could happen again.

Nightfern shrugged, trying to hide her unease. “He's right, though,” she mewed. “I should be focusing on serving the Clan, not trying to talk my way out of it because I'm scared.” She met the gray warrior's gaze, admitting, “I just... I just want to be a warrior to make the Clan proud, and to make you proud, Larksong. I don't want to disappoint any cat.”

Her former mentor blinked at her, sympathy bright in her eyes. Larksong touched her nose to Nightfern's ear and insisted in a firm mew, “You're not a disappointment to anyone. Don't let yourself get down over things like this.” She pulled her muzzle back, eyes glowing with a friendly light. “Nightfern, you've only been a warrior for five days,” she reminded the younger she-cat. “No cat's expecting you to be perfect right away. Let yourself make mistakes, because that's not something that we ever grow out of. All we can do is learn from our mistakes as best as we can, and serve our Clan as well as we are able. I know you're doing your best, Nightfern, and that's what matters.” 

Nightfern gave a grateful purr, though it sounded false to her ears. She appreciated her mentor's praise, and Larksong had always been very supportive, but she wasn't sure how much to believe her. There always seemed to be so much she didn't know how to do right. Her sister Darkbreeze always seemed so confident about everything, but Nightfern didn't even feel at ease around her own Clanmates most of the time. A real warrior wasn't supposed to constantly be anxious about saying the wrong thing or embarrassing herself in front of her own Clanmates. She had completed her training and earned her name, but in so many ways, she still felt like the same awkward, shy little kit that Larksong had started training. _Am I ever going to feel ready to be the warrior my Clan expects me to be?_

As the patrol continued on, the sky overhead grew even darker, and the rain fell in thicker and thicker waves. Anxiety spiked through Nightfern's pelt as the wind began to howl and tear at her pelt once more. The gentle mist of rain from earlier was gone – this was the same raging, devastating force that had swept through the Gathering. She could see unease glowing in the eyes of her Clanmates, and even Weaselfur's tail was twitching in an anxious fashion, but he said nothing to halt the patrol. Nigthfern longed to ask the deputy to take them back home, but she didn't dare ask again. She was a warrior now. She couldn't let her Clanmates see her as some scared little kit – not even if it felt true most of the time.

Suddenly, the brown tabby at the rear of the patrol came to a halt. Nightfern could see Sedgewhisker's gaze focusing on something in the distance. “There!” she hissed over the howl of the wind. Every cat looked up. Nigthfern followed Sedgewhisker's gaze to see a hare nosing through the clover, barely a fox-length away. The warrior stiffened. She could barely see the hare through the thick sheets of rain pounding down, but she could just make out the shape of its ears as it sniffed around for food. It didn't seem to have heard the patrol.

Weaselfur made a move towards the hare, but Nightfern was closer. She set off at a sprint, kicking up mud and water behind her as she closed in on the distracted hare. The creature took off with a startled squeak just as Nightfern was closing in on it. She kept on its trail, streaking after the animal with her belly low against the ground, her paws hardly touching the ground. It zigged and zagged, but Nightfern swerved in perfect time, never letting the mud pull her off of her course. She was so close now. Soon her Clan would be fed.

Suddenly, the hare let out a terrified squeal. It tried to make a sharp turn to the side, only for the mud to trip up its paws, sending it squealing forward. Nightfern finally made her lunge for the animal. Just as her paws closed over it, however, she found the ground suddenly dropping beneath her paws. A yelp escaped her as she was sent tumbling head over paws over the edge of the ride she'd failed to see, and down the muddy slope beyond, which led to a sharp drop-off above the lake. Before Nightfern could do anything to stop herself, she and the hare both tumbled over the edge and were sent plunging into the murky water below.

All of the air was knocked from Nightfern's chest as she punched through the surface. The surging water tossed Nightfern around like a piece of fresh-kill, sending her tumbling head over paws even as she tried to right herself. Terror surged through every hair on the warrior's pelt. _StarClan help me!_ She could feel the hare's struggles nearby, its hind legs kicking out wildly against her flanks until it was pulled away by the current. Her lungs were on fire. She needed air.

The warrior lashed out blindly with her paws, managing to claw her way to the surface. She only managed to take in a few desperate gulps of air before the current pulled her under again. The world spun around her. Her heart was pounding wildly against her ribs, every instinct screaming at her to swim for the surface, but she no longer knew which way was up. Her strength was leaving her the longer she fought against the waves. Horror flooded through her at the memory of Webfoot being pulled under to a watery death only days ago. _Am I going to die too?_ Desperation lent her new strength. She kicked with all four paws, finally righting herself and managing to pull herself up to the surface.

Nightfern sputtered and gasped for air as her head broke the surface. She struggled to keep herself afloat as the crashing waves threatened to send her under. The rain was coming down even harder and thicker than before, she couldn't see the shore, she couldn't see anything, it was all water. Then her gaze was caught by something peeking through the water. _There!_ A large branch was bobbing about in the waves.

New determination flooded through the exhausted warrior. She struggled to push herself through the water, reaching out for the branch with a shaking paw and hooking her claws into the bark. With the last of her strength, she managed to haul herself onto the branch. She was shivering all over as she clung desperately to the sleek bark. Her energy was spent. All she could do now was cling to her pathetic raft and pray it would keep her afloat.

As her mind slipped into a weary haze of exhaustion, all she could think was, _StarClan, please let me live._

**SCENEBREAK**

“Great StarClan, there's a cat over there!”

Nightfern groaned. Her head was spinning. She wasn't in her moss nest... the ground under her pelt was hard, and water lapped at her flanks. Where was she? When she tried to open her eyes, her sight was bleary and distorted. Blurred shapes, shadows of moving animals, loomed over her. Fear pricked at her paws, but she was too exhausted to flee. Her claws were burrowed into something sharp that was poking into her pelt – a branch? What was going on?

“Hey.” A paw prodded her side. “Hey you, get up.” She could hear a snarl in the she-cat's voice, but her mind still felt hazy with exhaustion, she couldn't reply.

Another voice, a tom's this time, spoke up. “For StarClan's sake, Treeshadow, this cat's half-drowned.”

Treeshadow answered back in a disdainful hiss. “She's still an intruder, Tigerheart, and she's too far into our territory for my liking.” The warrior turned back to Nightfern, demanding in a rougher tone, “How did you get here? Were you trying to spy on us?”

“You've got eyes, haven't you?” another she-cat huffed. “It's obvious she's spent half the night in the lake. The storm must have washed her up on our shore.”

While the other cats argued, a fourth cat drew closer to Nightfern. She had to squint her eyes to see him better – his dark face was soft with concern, and there was a kindness in his bright green eyes as he gazed down at her. “Can you hear me?” he asked. Nightfern shifted her head slightly, letting out a groan, but she had the strength to do little else. The tom blinked at her in a kind way. “We're going to take you back to our camp and let our medicine cat look you over. Can you tell me your name?”

Something about the kindness the tom was showing made her want to fight against her exhaustion and answer him. She lifted her muzzle slightly off the ground, trying to meet the tom's gaze without losing focus. He blinked in an encouraging way. In a hoarse mew, she managed to rasp out her name, “Nightfern.” Then her muzzle fell back to the ground, her energy spent from the small gesture, and a black wave crashed over her vision once more.

When she woke next, Nightfern was no longer on the lake shore with the strange cats surrounding her. Instead, there was soft moss under her, and her pelt felt dry and clean. She opened her eyes with a groan. Instead of the early morning sun beating down on her, a thick, woven wall of brambles blotted out the sky overhead. She had been laid in a moss nest, in some sort of bramble thicket formed into a den. Sand and pine needles made up the den's floor, and there were small hollows in the den wall where leaves and berries of all kinds were stored.

“Ah, you're finally awake.” Nightfern started, lifting her head to see where the mew had come from. A small brown tabby was sitting a few paces behind her. His stubby tail was whisked slowly over the sandy floor, and his dark eyes glowed with kindness. “I hoped it would be soon. You didn't take in too much water, thank StarClan, but fighting those waves last night really took it out of you. You should be alright, though, as long as we get some food into you.”

“What?” Nightfern shook her head, trying to focus her thoughts, but she still felt like she was in some kind of haze. “What happened? Where am I?” There was something familiar about the stump-tailed tom, she'd seen him before, but he wasn't one of her Clanmates. “Who are you?”

The tom's whiskers twitched. “I'm Twigclaw, and you're in my den,” he informed her.

_Twigclaw... the ShadowClan medicine cat?_ Nightfern's eyes flew open wide. “I'm in ShadowClan's camp?” she gasped. New energy flooded into her limbs now that she knew she was in enemy territory.

She tried to struggle to her paws, but Twigclaw was at her side in an instant, easing her back to the ground. “Take it easy,” he cautioned her. “You had a rough night – you need to let yourself rest.” Already Nightfern's muscles were protesting at the attempt at movement.

She settled back into her nest with a groan, blinking groggily at the medicine cat. The longer she was awake, the more alert she felt, but her mind was still a haze of confusion now that she knew where she was. “What happened?” she asked Twigclaw. “How did I get here?”

“That's what I'd like to know.” Nightfern stiffened, turning her gaze to the den's entrance. A familiar dark tabby was pushing into the den, his green eyes glinting with suspicion. The she-cat drew in a sharp breath at the sight of the tom. It was Rowanstar, ShadowClan's leader.

Twigclaw dipped his head to his leader, his mew respectful as he said, “I was just about to ask her – but I think it's clear that the storm must have washed her on our shore.” He turned to Nightfern, explaining, “Our warriors found you washed up from the lake in our territory. You were clinging to a branch, so you must have used it to keep afloat, but we don't know how you got in the lake in the first place.” Rowanstar gave his medicine cat a curt nod, then turned his gaze back to Nightfern, clearly awaiting an answer.

Nightfern struggled through her hazy thoughts, trying to string together the memories of the previous night. “We... we were out hunting,” she murmured, furrowing her brow in thought. “There was a hare. I tried to chase it, but it led me too close to a ridge over the lake... I couldn't stop in time.” Horror gripped her heart as the truth of her situation sank in. “The patrol... they don't know what happened to me,” she gasped. No cat had followed her in her pursuit of the hare, and the rain would have surely washed away any trail they could use to follow her. They would have no way of knowing what had happened to her.

She could imagine it all too easily – Weaselfur delivering the news to the Clan, Heathertail and Crowfeather reacting in horror to hear their daughter was missing, Darkbreeze's perpetual cheer turned to devastation at the loss of her sister. She silently cursed her foolishness – why had she chased after that hare? Now she was in enemy territory, and her family would be worried sick about her. “I can't be here, I have to get back to my Clan!”

The warrior tried to scramble out of her nest, but her shaking legs barely allowed her to sit up, and Twigclaw kept a firm paw on her back. “You’re not going anywhere,” the medicine cat mewed in a brisk tone. “You’re in no state to go traveling all the way back to WindClan territory.”

“Even if you were up to the journey, it wouldn’t be a good idea,” Rowanstar added in a stiff tone. “Last night’s rain caused the flooding from the lake to expand, and several of the streams feeding into the lake have flooded. Our own territory hasn’t suffered too badly, but I imagine ThunderClan and RiverClan territories would be dangerous to try and pass through right now.”

Nightfern’s pelt bristled in alarm. If Rowanstar was right, then there was no safe way back to WindClan territory. Passing through flooded Clan territory would be too dangerous, and there was no way of telling what dangers lay outside of Clan territory if she tried going the long way around. Her blood ran cold as the truth sank in - she was trapped in enemy territory until the floodwaters went down.

As her mind raced with new worries and regrets, Nightfern’s nervous gaze slid to Rowanstar. The ginger tom was known for being a less divisive leader than his predecessor, Blackstar, but he was still leader of an enemy Clan, and ShadowClan was hardly known for being charitable to outsiders. She had no idea what kind of welcome to expect from the tom. “Then what should I do?” she asked in a careful mew.

Rowanstar’s eyes were narrowed as he regarded the young warrior, but Nightfern saw no anger in their depths, only a sort of careful sizing up of the she-cat. Finally, he mewed in an even tone, “I won’t force any cat to travel in dangerous conditions. You may stay with my Clan until the floodwaters go down enough for you to travel home safely.”

Nightfern released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. “Thank you, Rowanstar,” she murmured, dipping her head respectfully.

The leader gave a stiff nod in return. “You may rest until you’ve recovered your strength, but once you’re back on your paws, you’ll be required to join hunting patrols and take up whatever regular duties you would have in your own Clan,” Rowanstar told her. “I won’t have any able-bodied cat taking food from my Clan without contributing, WindClan warrior or no. Understood?”

“Yes, Rowanstar,” Nightfern mewed quickly. It was an odd thought, having to hunt to feed enemy warriors. She barely knew any ShadowClan cats beyond seeing them briefly during Gatherings. It was hard enough feeling confident around her own Clanmates - how was she going to keep her nerve hunting and serving beside cats who saw her as an unwelcome intruder? But she knew better than to argue the point. Rowanstar was being generous by letting her stay, and she had no desire to repay his hospitality by refusing to help feed his Clan. She would just have to make the best of her situation.

Rowanstar gave a final flick of his ear in acknowledgment, then turned and padded out of the den. Nightfern watched him go. She could feel a lump forming in her throat as she laid her head back onto her nest. She had only been gone from the moorland for a night, but her heart already ached for her home and her family. There was no way of knowing how soon the floodwaters would go down. She could be stuck with ShadowClan for days or even moons, with no friends or family, no familiar sights to comfort her, and no cat wanting her anywhere near them. The warrior curled up into a tight ball, trying to ignore the aching in her heart. She had always felt somehow removed from the rest of her Clanmates, but never had she felt so alone as she did now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we go, this is the first chapter of Nightfern's Choice. :D This takes place two days after the disasterous Gathering in Faded Boundaries which, for those who remember, is the exact same day Blazepaw, Snowpaw, and Silentpaw have their hunting competition and the rain starts up again.
> 
> It was fun getting to write in Nightfern's POV for the first time. She's always been somewhat in the background, mostly because of her quiet nature, but her story really is one of the most heartbreaking in EOTW. It'll be nice to focus on her when she's a bit younger and before all of that terrible stuff wears her down so much. And hopefully at the end, I can show her a bit farther forward in time, and see how her progress in healing is coming along.
> 
> Not much to say about this particular chapter. I did finally get to reveal who the elder that drowned at the Gathering in FB was. I always hated how I forgot to actually assign any particular elder to that drowning, and none of the elders disappeared from the allegiances after that book, so that just bugged me. I figured might as well make it a WindClan elder who dies, since they don't have any after that. I know I mentioned cats in the elders den in that book, but I'll just handwave that by saying it was warriors cleaning the den because reasons. :P
> 
> Webfoot was led to StarClan by his brother Crowfur, and he visits his mate Dandelion and vice versa very often after she dies.
> 
> This was a fun one to write. ^^ I had some initial trouble with the near-drowning scene, but I watched a few clips of animated characters swimming in rough water, mostly Remy swimming in the sewers in Ratatouille, to get inspiration. It was fun getting to cameo a few ShadowClan cats in there as well. Three guesses who the tom with the kind green eyes is. ;)
> 
> Like I said on the cover, I dunno when I'll get the next chapter done, but I hope this is enough to tide you over for now. ^^


End file.
